Sleeve M; Vinyl M. Urban Hymns is The Verve’s third studio album, blending sweeping orchestral swells with atmospheric grooves across tracks like “Bitter Sweet Symphony,” “The Drugs Don’t Work,” and “Lucky Man.” Hypnotic strings and soulful rhythm underpin Richard Ashcroft’s impassioned vocals and spacey, psychedelic guitar textures. Released on 29 September 1997, it knocked Oasis’s Be Here Now off the UK chart and sold over 10 million copies worldwide . Awarded Best British Album at the 1998 Brit Awards, Urban Hymns marked The Verve’s transformation into Britpop icons